BARCELONA WEDNESDAY PREVIEW – SIX-TIME CHAMP NADAL GOES FOR 30 IN A ROW IN BARCELONA• The second round continues Wednesday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, an ATP World Tour 500 tournament, featuring four of the top eight seeds.

• First up on Pista Central is No. 15 seed Bernard Tomic against Spain’s Albert Montanes, a match-up pitting a 19-year-old rising star against a 31-year-old veteran. Tomic’s rise has been somewhat stalled as of late - after making the fourth round of the Australian Open and setting his career-high of No. 34 afterwards, he has gone 5-5 in ATP World Tour events and is currently No. 35. He will have a test in this first-time meeting with Montanes, who has been as high as No. 22 and whose 10 career ATP World Tour finals have all come on clay.

• The second match features No. 3 seed David Ferrer against Serbian wild card Filip Krajinovic, another match-up of youth against experience (Krajinovic is 20, Ferrer is 30); Ferrer had a disappointing week in Monte Carlo last week, losing his opening match to Thomaz Bellucci, but judging by his previous success here, he may be able to rebound from that. He has reached the semi-finals or better here the last five years, including three finals (losing to Nadal in each) but winning 18 of 23 matches in the process. This is another first-time meeting. Krajinovic underwent shoulder surgery last July and his opening round win was his first on the ATP World Tour since a SF in Belgrade in May ’10.

• Next up is top seed and World No. 2 Rafael Nadal against fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez; Nadal has won three of the previous four meetings. Nadal is coming off a spectacular week in Monte Carlo, where he captured his eighth straight title (and snapped a seven-match losing streak to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the final). Nadal also has won the Barcelona title the last six times he has played it since 2005 (did not play in 2010), winning 29 matches in a row here. But Garcia-Lopez has beaten the left-hander before, when he was No. 1 in 2010 in Bangkok, and he also had a recent win over World No. 4 Andy Murray (at Indian Wells last month).

• Next is No. 7 seed Feliciano Lopez against Italy’s Flavio Cipolla; since reaching his career-high No. 15 after the Australian Open, Lopez has had a difficult run, losing seven of his last 11 matches - he was a semi-finalist in Houston but has fallen first or second round at his other six events since Australia. Cipolla is playing his best tennis, recently reaching his first ATP World Tour semi-final on the clay of Casablanca. Lopez won their only previous meeting in straight sets, at the Australian Open this year.

• Last up is No. 5 seed Janko Tipsarevic against Romania’s Victor Hanescu; Tipsarevic is looking to make his first deep run here, having fallen early in his two previous appearances - first round in 2008 and second round in ’09 - but he was ranked nowhere near as high as he is now, coming into 2008 at No. 34 and 2009 at No. 55, now all the way up at No. 8 (his career-high, which he set after Miami on April 2); Hanescu leads the head-to-head, 2-1, but that includes a retirement win, and they haven’t played since 2009. Hanescu

• Mr. April on Clay – Nadal has won 72 straight matches on clay in the month of April. During his clay court streak in April he has won 13 titles – eight in Monte-Carlo and five in Barcelona. His last loss on clay in April came on Apr. 8, 2005 to Igor Andreev in the quarter-finals of Valencia.

CLAY COURT DOMINATOR – Nadal has the best career match record on clay in the Open Era with a 236-18 mark (.928) and he’s 33-4 in clay finals. Here's a year-by-year look at Nadal's clay court supremacy since 2005, compiling a 209-8 match record (.963) and 32-4 mark in clay court finals on the ATP World Tour: W-L Clay Finals2012 – 5-0 1-02011 – 28-2 3-2 (l. to Djokovic twice)2010 - 22-0 4-02009 - 23-2 3-1 (l. to Federer)2008 - 24-1 4-02007 - 31-1 5-1 (l. to Federer)2006 - 26-0 4-02005 - 50-2 8-0Note: Since 2005, the only player to beat Nadal in an opening round match on clay is Ferrero in ’08 Rome

WEDNESDAY SECOND ROUND FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play by Court

• Tomic, 19, the youngest player in the Top 50 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings and the top Aussie on the ATP World Tour, made a successful Barcelona debut on Tuesday, defeating Latvian Ernests Gulbis 63 64• Last week opened the clay court circuit in Monte Carlo (d. Istomin, l. to Dolgopolov in three sets) • He comes in with a 14-7 match record on the season and last year didn’t win his 14th and 15th matches until week of October 10 in Shanghai (finished 16-15)• Opened the campaign with first career ATP World Tour semi-final in Brisbane (l. to eventual champ Murray) and last month advanced to the quarter-finals in Delray Beach (l. to Isner)

• Montanes, 31, opened Monday with a 75 62 win over countryman Gerard Granollers-Pujol to improve his record to 11-10 in his hometown tournament… Playing here for 11th time in 12 years (except ’07)…His best result is the semi-finals in 2004 (l. to Gaudio) and quarters in ’08 (l. to Wawrinka)• He enters with a 4-8 match record on the season (4-6 on clay) and last week in Monte Carlo defeated top Canadian Milos Raonic in three sets (l. to No. 7 seed Tipsarevic)• His other match wins came in Vina del Mar where he reached the quarter-finals with wins over countryman Ramirez Hidalgo and Dutra Silva before falling to eventual champ Juan Monaco in three sets…Then lost four opening round matches in a row without winning a set (retired in Buenos Aires and Acapulco with a back injury)• In March, withdrew from Indian Wells and Miami (due to back) and returned in Casablanca two weeks ago, losing in first round to Igor Andreev

• Krajinovic, 20, came into the tournament as the lowest-ranked player in the field (No. 789) and in the first round defeated Spanish wild card Inigo Cervantes 62 64…It was his first ATP World Tour win in almost two years since reaching the semi-finals on home soil in Belgrade in May 2010 (l. to Querrey)• The young Serb underwent right shoulder surgery in July last year and missed rest of season before returning in late February 2012…Before surgery, played in three Italian Futures events in May and one Challenger, last week of June 13…Missed rest of season before returning week of Feb. 27 at Turkey Futures #8…Also played following week in Turkey• Three weeks ago qualified at Barletta Challenger (l. to Fognini) and last week qualified at Rome Challenger and won a round (d. Mannarino, l. to Huta Galung)• Reached a career-high No. 170 in May 2010 (after Belgrade SF)

• Ferrer, 30, the No. 2 Spaniard (behind Nadal) is co-leader (w/Federer) on the ATP World Tour with three titles…His three titles ties a career-high (also in 2007)• The Valencia resident is making his 10th tournament appearance (21-9 mark) and has reached the semi-finals or better the past five years, losing to Nadal four times and Verdasco in SFs in ’10…Lost to Nadal in 2008, ’09 and ’11 final and in ’07 semi-finals• He is playing in his eighth tournament of the year (24-4 record, 12-1 on clay, 12-3 on hard) and last week lost in the opening round (after bye) to Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci in Monte Carlo…Won three of first four tournaments in Auckland (d. Rochus), Buenos Aires (d. Almagro) and Acapulco (d. Verdasco)• In his other tournaments he didn’t win, reached quarter-finals at the Australian Open and Miami (l. to Djokovic in both) and third round at Indian Wells (l. to Istomin)

• Nadal, 24, the six-time champion (2005-09, ‘11), has a 30-1 career match record in Barcelona, winning 29 matches in a row since his only loss to countryman Alex Corretja in the second round in 2003…Has won 60 of 62 sets during the streak (’06 QF vs. Nieminen, ’08 F vs. Ferrrer)…Last year defeated countryman David Ferrer 62 64 in the third final in a row (lost 21 games in tourn.) • The 25-year-old Mallorcan native is 22-3 on the season and last week he captured a record eighth straight title at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo (d. Djokovic)…Held serve 42 of 45 games and didn’t lose a set en route to his first title since Roland Garros last June (went 12 events since Paris) • Opened the season by reaching semi-finals in Doha (l. to Monfils) and followed with runner-up at the Australian Open, falling to Djokovic 57 64 62 67 75 in a record 5:53 marathon…Has reached the last four Grand Slam finals (1-3 mark) going back to Roland Garros (10-5 lifetime in finals)• Prior to last week, his last match was Mar. 28 in Miami where he defeated No. 6 Tsonga in the quarter-finals before withdrawing from SF (vs. Murray) due to left knee injury…It was only second walkover he gave in 777 matches (’04 Estoril)• Prior to Miami, he reached the singles semi-finals (l. to Federer) and captured his eighth career doubles title (w/M. Lopez) in Indian Wells…Did not drop a set in five matches during doubles play

• Garcia-Lopez, 28, opened with a 63 63 win over Belgian Olivier Rochus on Tuesday to improve to 4-6 lifetime in Barcelona…His best result is the third round two years ago (l. to Bellucci)…Playing here for the seventh time in eight years (except ’06)• He enters with a 10-8 record on the season (3-1 on clay) and two weeks ago reached the quarter-finals in Casablanca (l. to Andreev)…Also a quarter-finalist in Auckland in January (l. to Verdasco)• Has an 8-27 career record vs. Top 10 opponents and defeated No. 4 Andy Murray in the second round at Indian Wells last month…Seven of his wins have come on hard courts and lone clay win came over No. 10 Tsonga, who retired after first set (6-2) in second round of Madrid two years ago

• Lopez, 30, is appearing in the tournament for the 12th straight year (since 2001) and 13th overall since his debut in 1998 with a 15-12 mark, reaching a personal-best quarter-final showing last year (l. to Dodig) ranked No. 42…From 2006-10, lost to a Top 10 opponent all five years• His best result of the year came two weeks ago in Houston where he reached semi-finals in his season clay court debut (after bye, d. Lorenzi, Berlocq, retired, before losing in three sets to Isner• The Madrid native has a 7-9 match record on the season and he also reached the fourth round at the Australian Open where he defeated Leonardo Mayer, Flavio Cipolla and No. 17 John Isner (in five sets) before losing to countryman No. 2 Rafael Nadal in straight sets…Then went 2-5 in next five events• Has not played on Spain’s Davis Cup team in first two ties but last year was member of winning squad (d. Fish 8-6 in fifth set in QF tie in Austin) and also played doubles in 1R, SF and F ties• One of an ATP World Tour-best five Spaniards in Top 20 – No. 2 Nadal, No. 6 Ferrer, No. 13 Almagro, No. 16 Lopez, No. 20 Verdasco

• Hanescu, 30, is making his fourth visit to Barcelona and owns a 4-3 career mark and trying to reach the third round for the second time…Last year lost to No. 6 Ferrer in the Round of 16• The No. 2 Romanian (behind No. 93 Ungur) enters with a 5-6 match record (4-4 on clay) and his best result is the second round five times (Chennai, Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires and Chennai)…Last week qualified in Monte Carlo and lost in the first round to Italian Andeas Seppi• On the Challenger level, reached the semi-finals in Marrakech and quarter-finals in Barletta• Decided to play in Barcelona this week instead of his hometown tournament in Bucharest where he reached his first ATP World Tour final in 2007

• Tipsarevic, 27, the No. 2 Serb (behind No. 1 Djokovic) is making his first appearance here in three years when he lost to Stepanek in the second round…In ’08, retired (ankle) in first round vs. Gulbis • The Belgrade native comes in with a 17-8 match record on the season (2-2 on clay) and last week reached the third round in Monte Carlo (after bye, d. Montanes, l. to Simon in three sets)…Has won opening round match in all seven tournaments this year• Prior to last week, played in Davis Cup quarter-final tie in Czech Republic and defeated Radek Stepanek 9-7 in the fifth set in second rubber before losing to No. 7 Berdych in three tie-breaks• Has reached the quarter-finals or better in four tournaments this season, including runner-up showing in opening week in Chennai (l. to Raonic in three tie-breaks without break of serve)…In February, advanced to semi-finals in Marseille (l. to Llodra) and last month was quarter-finalist at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l. to Murray)

The Spaniard created 15 break point chances and was able to convert six as he raced to victory in 81 minutes. The six-time champion improved to a 31-1 event record. He won five straight titles from 2005-2009 and regained the crown last year with victory over David Ferrer, having been forced to miss the event in 2010.

The 25-year-old Nadal ended a 10-month title drought last week with victory at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (d. Djokovic). He has a 23-3 match record on the season, also highlighted by finishing runner-up at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic).

He will next face Colombian qualifier Robert Farah, who prevailed against recent Casablanca champion Pablo Andujar 7-6(8), 4-6, 7-5 in two hours and 49 minutes. The 246th-ranked Farah notched his first tour-level win on Tuesday, when he defeated Spanish lucky loser Arnau Brugues-Davi.

World No. 6 Ferrer also cruised through his opening match, dismissing Serbian wild card Filip Krajinovic 6-0, 6-3 in just 58 minutes. The Spaniard notched his 25th match win of the season as he broke serve five times and won 78 per cent of points behind his first serve.

The 30-year-old Ferrer improved to a 22-9 match record in Barcelona, where he is a three-time runner-up (2008, 2009 & 2011). The right-hander is chasing his fourth ATP World Tour title of the season this week, following victories in Auckland (d. Rochus), Buenos Aires (d. Almagro) and Acapulco (d. Verdasco).

Ferrer goes onto face Spanish veteran Albert Montanes, who saved four match points to oust 15th-seeded Australian Bernard Tomic 6-0, 5-7, 7-5 in two hours and 19 minutes. The 31 year old, a Barcelona resident, is a winner of five ATP World Tour clay-court titles and was a semi-finalist at this ATP World Tour 500 tournament in 2004 (l. to Gaudio).

World No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic got off to a winning start in his first Barcelona appearance in three years, defeating Romanian Victor Hanescu 7-5, 6-4 in one hour and 42 minutes. The Serbian will play Portugal’s Frederico Gil for a play in the quarter-finals. Gil advanced with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over countryman Joao Sousa.

Eighth seed Kei Nishikori reached the third round after finishing strongly to beat Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3, 4-6, 6-0. The Japanese No. 1 converted five of his 11 break points to claim victory in two hours and 16 minutes.

South Africa’s Kevin Anderson set a third-round clash with ninth-seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. The No. 13 seed held his nerve in two tie-breaks to beat Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis 7-6(5), 7-6(5) in one hour and 55 minutes.

Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo will face second seed Andy Murray in the third round after defeating Dutchman Robin Haase 6-4, 6-3 in 76 minutes. World No. 54 Giraldo saved all four break points he faced against Haase, who was a quarter-finalist (l. to Djokovic) at last week’s Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters.

Canadian No. 11 seed Milos Raonic recorded another straight-sets win as he defeated Russia’s Igor Andreev, 6-4, 6-1. In a dominant serving display, Raonic dropped just seven points and broke his opponent on three occasions for victory in 74 minutes. He goes onto face sixth-seeded Spaniard Nicolas Almagro.

« Last Edit: April 25, 2012, 05:28:31 PM by conchita »

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Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.

World No. 1 Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan topped David Marrero and Fernando Verdasco 5-7, 6-2, 10-7 in the second round of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Wednesday.

The American twins, coming off of their second triumph of the season at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, won 43 per cent of their return points to edge the Spanish tandem in 83 minutes.

The Bryans, aiming to win their third title at the ATP World Tour 500 event, will face eighth seeds Oliver Marach and Alexander Peya in the quarter-finals.

Marach and Peya booked their place in the final eight with a 6-1, 4-6, 10-7 victory over Mikhail Elgin and Denis Istomin. The Austrians are looking to lift their second trophy of the year, having triumphed at the Heineken Open in Auckland.

Wednesday was a good day for favorites, led by top seeds Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer, who both won in straight sets. World No. 2 Nadal had little trouble against fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, winning 6-1, 6-2. “I think I played a good match as I made only few mistakes. My forehand longline was strong which means that I’m improving my game,” the left-hander said.

World No. 6 David Ferrer only needed 58 minutes to defeat Serbian wild card Filip Krajinovic 6-0, 6-3. Ferrer broke serve five times and managed to win 78 percent of points behind his first serve on his way to his 25th match win of the season. Ferrer, who is a three-time runner up in Barcelona, is seeking his fourth ATP World Tour title of the season.

“Krajinovic is a good player. He is very young and faces a great future,” said Ferrer about his rival. “Playing in Barcelona is very special to me. I hope I can make it to the final again,” added Spain’s No. 2.

Ferrer advances to face 31-year-old veteran Albert Montañes, who upset 15th-seeded Australian Bernard Tonic in an exciting 6-0, 5-7, 7-5 match that lasted two hours and 19 minutes. Montanes, a Barcelona resident, saved four match points on his way to victory.

Kei Nishikori, the eighth seed and No. 1 from Japan, moves on to the third round after defeating Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 in two hours and 16 minutes. He successfully converted five of his 11 break points.

“I started the tournament well. I was a little nervous in the beginning and therefore I’m happy about the win. I was a little tired today and hope to recover fast for my match against Ramos,” told Nishikori the media.

Spain’s World No. 13 Nicolas Almagro took a break from competing in the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell to teach tennis to local children on Wednesday in the Cathedral Square as part of a clinic sponsored by Babolat. The children, who came from nearby schools and the Sant Cugat and Barcelona tennis clubs, took turns returning volleys from Almagro.

In addition, Almagro posed for a picture with Real Club de Tenis de Barcelona President Albert Agustí and Barcelona Deputy Mayor of Quality of Life Maite Fandos.

Almagro defeated France’s Edouard Roger-Vasselin on Tuesday (7-5, 7-6) after a first-round bye, and he will next compete against Milos Raonic.

Rafael Nadal continues his Barcelona campaign against Robert Farah on Thursday.

BARCELONA THURSDAY PREVIEW - BIG THIRD ROUND LINE-UP LED BY TOP SEEDS NADAL & MURRAY • The entire round of 16 will take to the red clay courts of the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899 on Thursday as eight quarter-final spots are up for grabs at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Overall 10 of the top 16 seeds are in action, including seven of the top eight.

• First up on Pista Central is No. 6 seed Nicolas Almagro against No. 11 seed Milos Raonic of Canada. While Raonic may have won the pair’s only previous meeting, in Chennai in the opening week of the year on hard courts, Almagro holds the upper hand here, with all 11 of his ATP World Tour titles (and his five other finals) all coming on clay, and more specifically being a two-time semi-finalist here in Barcelona. Raonic’s three titles (and two other finals) have all come on hard, and he is going for his first quarter-final here.

• Next is No. 2 seed Andy Murray against Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo; Murray has never been this far in Barcelona - he never passed the second round in his three previous attempts; now he’s on the verge of his first quarter-final here. Giraldo has struggled against the sport’s elite as he enters with an 0-14 lifetime against Top 10 players, and just 1-31 in sets (the only set he won came late last year in Bangkok, pushing then-World No. 9 Gael Monfils to three sets).

• Next up is top seed and World No. 2 Rafael Nadal against Colombian qualifier Robert Farah. Nadal is coming off a great week in Monte Carlo, where he captured his eighth straight Monaco title and snapped a seven-match losing streak to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the final. Nadal is now continuing to dominate another tournament, his Wednesday win in Barcelona being his 30th win in a row here (he has won the title here the last six times he has played); Farah is having a breakthrough week, scoring his first career two ATP World Tour-level match wins (2-6) to reach the third round here, but he has never played a Top 10 player before (let alone a World No. 2).

• Next up is No. 3 seed and No. 2 Spaniard David Ferrer against countryman Albert Montanes; Ferrer rebounded from an opening round loss in Monte Carlo last week with a 60 63 opening round win here on Wednesday, and will now try to reach the quarter-finals here for the sixth straight year (he has in fact been to the semi-finals or better the last five years here); he has now won 19 of his last 24 matches here; Montanes is tough on clay, all 10 of his career finals coming on the dirt, but Ferrer has won all three of their meetings handily.

• Last up is No. 9 seed Fernando Verdasco against No. 13 and top South African Kevin Anderson. Verdasco has always played well in Barcelona, in fact winning his last six matches in a row here (he missed the event last year, but went 5-0 to win it in 2010 and 1-0 so far this year); Anderson is through to the third round here for the first time; Verdasco won their only previous meeting, just a year ago on the clay courts of Estoril.

• April Streak on Clay – Nadal has won 73 straight matches on clay in the month of April. During his clay court streak in April he has won 13 titles – eight in Monte-Carlo and five in Barcelona. His last loss on clay in April came on Apr. 8, 2005 to Igor Andreev in the quarter-finals of Valencia.

CLAY COURT DOMINATOR – Nadal has the best career match record on clay in the Open Era with a 237-18 mark (.929) and he’s 33-4 in clay finals. Here's a year-by-year look at Nadal's clay court supremacy since 2005, compiling a 210-8 match record (.963) and 32-4 mark in clay court finals on the ATP World Tour: W-L Clay Finals2012 – 6-0 1-02011 – 28-2 3-2 (l. to Djokovic twice)2010 - 22-0 4-02009 - 23-2 3-1 (l. to Federer)2008 - 24-1 4-02007 - 31-1 5-1 (l. to Federer)2006 - 26-0 4-02005 - 50-2 8-0Note: Nadal has not lost in his second match on clay in a tournament since Sept. 2004 in Palermo (l. to Mutis)

THURSDAY THIRD ROUND FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play by Court

• Almagro, 26, made his ninth Barcelona appearance (17-8 mark) on Tuesday, defeating Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin 75 76(3)…His best results are semi-final showings in 2006 (l. to Nadal) and last year (l. to Ferrer)…Also a quarter-finalist in 2008• Has not lost in the opening round in his first 10 tournaments this season• The Spanish No. 3 (behind No. 2 Nadal, No. 6 Ferrer) comes in with a 26-8 match record on the season (most wins), including 16-3 on clay (most wins this year)…In February, he captured his 11th career ATP World Tour title in Sao Paulo (d. Volandri) and followed with runner-up in Buenos Aires (l. to Ferrer)• Last week in Monte Carlo, had a bye and defeated Potito Starace 76 61 in the second round before losing to Swiss No. 2 Stanislas Wawrinka 63 63

• Raonic, 21, looks for his 20th match win of the season (19-4, 2-1 on clay) and tries to reach his fourth ATP World Tour quarter-final this year, his second career on clay (’11 Estoril, SF)• The top Canadian reached a career-high No. 24 ranking on Feb. 27 and comes in No. 25…His best results were a pair of ATP World Tour titles in Chennai (d. Tipsarevic) in first week of campaign and San Jose (d. Istomin) on Feb. 19…Also runner-up for second straight year in Memphis (l. to Melzer)… His only pre-final losses came at Australian Open (l. to Hewitt in 3rd Rd.), in Indian Wells (l. to No. 3 Federer in 3R), Miami (W/O vs. Murray in 3R) and Monte Carlo (Montanes in 1R)• Last month in Miami sprained his ankle in a warm-up before doubles match, then retired in second round doubles match at 1-2 (w/Anderson) before withdrawing from 3rd Rd. (vs. No. 4 Murray)• In San Jose, defended his title and held serve 41 of 42 games in four matches…In Memphis, was only broken once en route to the final before losing serve twice to Melzer in title match• This year leads ATP World Tour in service games won (93%) and 1st serve pts. won (82%) and No. 2 in break points saved (73%), in aces (333, behind Isner’s 353) and No. 4 in 2nd serve pts. won (58%)• In opening week of season, held serve all 48 games, defeating No. 10 Almagro in the semi-finals and No. 9 Tipsarevic in the final (in three TBs)• In first round Davis Cup tie in Vancouver vs. France, defeated Julien Benneteau and lost in doubles rubber…Withdrew from reverse singles on Sunday due to left knee pain

• Giraldo, 24, is appearing in the third round for the second straight year after posting wins over No. 18 seed Denis Istomin 76(3) 64 and Dutchman Robin Haase 64 63…Last year defeated Bellucci and Ramos before falling to Nadal 63 61)…Comes in ranked No. 54 for second year in a row• The No. 2 Colombian (behind No. 53) is trying to reach his third ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season after advancing to the semi-finals in Acapulco (l. to Ferrer) in March and quarter-finals in opening week of year in Brisbane (l. to Simon)• Has a 15-9 match record on the season (8-4 on clay) and attempting to post his first career Top 10 win (0-14)…Has an 0-4 mark this year, losing all nine sets

• Murray, 24, on Tuesday opened with a 62 63 win over Sergiy Stakhovsky in his first Barcelona appearance in four years…It was his second win here (2-3 mark), first since ’06 (d. Granollers)• The British No. 1 enters with a 20-5 match record on the season and became the eighth Top 10 player to register 20 match wins…Last week opened the clay court campaign with a quarter-final showing in Monte Carlo (l. to No. 7 Berdych)• The Scottish native opened the year with his 22nd career ATP World Tour title in Brisbane (d. Dolgopolov) and last month was runner-up in Dubai (l. to Federer) and on Apr. 1 in Miami (l. to Djokovic)…Also semi-finalist at Australian Open (l. to Djokovic)…Has advanced to the semi-finals or better in last five Grand Slam tournaments

• Nadal, 24, the six-time champion (2005-09, ‘11), has a 31-1 career match record in Barcelona, winning 30 matches in a row since his only loss to countryman Alex Corretja in the second round in 2003… Opened with a 61 62 win over countryman Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 61 62…Has won 62 of 64 sets during the streak (’06 QF vs. Nieminen, ’08 F vs. Ferrrer)…Last year defeated countryman Ferrer 62 64in the third final in a row (lost 21 games in tourn.) • The 25-year-old Mallorcan native is 23-3 on the season and last week he captured a record eighth straight title at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo (d. Djokovic)…Held serve 42 of 45 games and didn’t lose a set en route to his first title since Roland Garros last June (went 12 events since Paris) • Opened the season by reaching semi-finals in Doha (l. to Monfils) and followed with runner-up at the Australian Open, falling to Djokovic 57 64 62 67 75 in a record 5:53 marathon…Has reached the last four Grand Slam finals (1-3 mark) going back to Roland Garros (10-5 lifetime in finals)• Prior to last week, his last match was Mar. 28 in Miami where he defeated No. 6 Tsonga in the quarter-finals before withdrawing from SF (vs. Murray) due to left knee injury…It was only second walkover he gave in 777 matches (’04 Estoril)• Prior to Miami, he reached the singles semi-finals (l. to Federer) and captured his eighth career doubles title (w/M. Lopez) in Indian Wells…Did not drop a set in five matches during doubles play

• Farah, 25, is the only player (of 11) to come out of the weekend qualifying draw either as a qualifier or lucky loser to reach the third round…Ranked No. 246, the Colombian qualified into the main draw with a pair of wins and then posted wins over lucky loser Arnau Brugues-Davi 64 76(3) and No. 16 seed Pablo Andujar 76(8) 46 63• This season played in two Davis Cup ties for his native country and lost matches vs. Ecuador and Brazil…Tried to qualify in Australian Open, Vina del Mar and Delray Beach but lost in 1R, 2R and 3R, respectively• Has played in three Challengers (2-3 mark) with best result coming on home soil two weeks ago in Pereira (l. to Ramirez Hidalgo in third set tie-break)• Played collegiate tennis at Univ. of Southern California (in LA) and helped his team to team title while finishing No. 1 in singles and No. 2 in Doubles in 2010…Was named Pac-10 Player of Year and has one semester left to finish his economics degree• Upon turning pro in June 2010 won three titles in first four tournaments (15-1 record), a pair of Futures events in Venezuela #1 and #3, then Bogota-2 Challenger in July…In August, reached semi-finals at Campos do Jordao and quarter-finals at Brasilia Challengers• Last year qualified four times on ATP World Tour – San Jose, Delray Beach, Munich and US Open (first Grand Slam event) and lost in 1R each time…Reached a career-high No. 163 on June 6

• Montanes, 31, opened Monday with a 75 62 win over countryman Gerard Granollers-Pujol and followed with a 60 57 75 victory over No. 15 seed Bernard Tomic, saving four match points, to improve his record to 12-10 in his hometown tournament… Playing here for 11th time in 12 years (except ’07)…His best result is the semi-finals in 2004 (l. to Gaudio) and quarters in ’08 (l. to Wawrinka)• He enters with a 5-8 match record on the season (5-6 on clay) and last week in Monte Carlo defeated top Canadian Milos Raonic in three sets (l. to No. 7 seed Tipsarevic)• His other match wins came in Vina del Mar where he reached the quarter-finals with wins over countryman Ramirez Hidalgo and Dutra Silva before falling to eventual champ Juan Monaco in three sets…Then lost four opening round matches in a row without winning a set (retired in Buenos Aires and Acapulco with a back injury)• In March, withdrew from Indian Wells and Miami (due to back) and returned in Casablanca two weeks ago, losing in first round to Igor Andreev• Has a 5-28 career record vs. Top 10 opponents and trying to break an eight-match losing streak since defeating No. 1 Federer in the semi-finals of Estoril in May 2010

• Ferrer, 30, the No. 2 Spaniard, is making his 10th tournament appearance (22-9 mark) and opened with a 60 63 win over Serbian Filip Krajinovic…Has reached the semi-finals or better the past five years, losing to Nadal four times and Verdasco in SFs in ’10…Lost to Nadal in 2008, ’09 and ’11 final and in ’07 semi-finals• The Valencia resident (behind Nadal) is co-leader (w/Federer) on the ATP World Tour with three titles…His three titles ties a career-high (also in 2007)• He is playing in his eighth tournament of the year (25-4 record, 13-1 on clay, 12-3 on hard) and last week lost in the opening round (after bye) to Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci in Monte Carlo…Won three of first four tournaments in Auckland (d. Rochus), Buenos Aires (d. Almagro) and Acapulco (d. Verdasco)• In his other tournaments he didn’t win, reached quarter-finals at the Australian Open and Miami (l. to Djokovic in both) and third round at Indian Wells (l. to Istomin)

• Verdasco, 28, who captured the title here two years ago (d. Soderling), is one of two champions in the main draw along with six-time winner Rafael Nadal…Opened with a 63 61 win over Belgian Steve Darcis on Tuesday…Has a 12-6 career mark here and reached the quarter-finals in 2009 (l. to Gonzalez) and third round in 2004 and ’06 (l. to Robredo both times)• Has a 13-8 match record on the season (9-4 on clay) and reached the final in Acapulco (l. to Ferrer) on March 3…Also a semi-finalist in Auckland (l. to Ferrer) and quarter-finalist in Sao Paulo (l. to Ramos)• Last week in Monte Carlo, posted wins over Olivier Rochus and Ivan Dodig, both in three sets from a set down before losing to top Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 75(7) 62 in the third round

• Anderson, 25, is trying to reach his fourth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season and third career on clay (’11 Estoril & Houston two weeks ago)…Enters with a 15-8 match record (4-2 on clay)• The 25-year-old South African is 3-2 in Barcelona and this is the first time in the third round after defeating Malek Jaziri 62 63 and Argentine qualifier Fedrico Delbonis 76(5) 76(5)• Last month he captured his second career ATP World Tour title in Delray Beach, defeating Aussie qualifier Marinko Matosevic…En route, defeated Andy Roddick (saving three match points) in the quarter-finals and top seed John Isner in the semi-finals• In February, he advanced to the quarter-finals in San Jose, falling to eventual champion Milos Raonic

Tournament organizers of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell paid tribute to Spain’s tennis legend Manolo Santana for his first victory 50 years ago at the Real Club Tennis Barcelona. ‘Super Manuel’ received a mini Trofeo Conde de Godó replica from Javier Godó at the Pista Central in front of thousands of fans.

“I remember the first final against Krishnan as if it was today. I have always felt at home here in Barcelona,” said Santana, who won the Trofeo Conde de Godó on two occasions, in 1962 and 1970.

"This club is very special to me. It is were the our tennis history started," added Santana.

74-years-old, Santana, who was the first Spanish player to claim the Wimbledon title, enjoyed the tribute at the Real Club Tenis Barcelona and watched the Rafa Nadal - Guillermo Garcia-Lopez second round match before heading back to Madrid, where he is tournament director of Masters 1000 Event.

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Canadian Milos Raonic stepped up his clay-court credentials on Thursday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell as he ousted sixth-seeded Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the ATP World Tour 500 clay-court tennis tournament.

The 11th-seeded Raonic dropped just 11 points on serve, saving both break points he faced, and converted all three of his break point chances to claim victory over two-time semi-finalist Almagro in 68 minutes. He is through to his fourth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season, highlighted by winning titles at the Aircel Chennai Open (d. Tipsarevic) and the SAP Open in San Jose (d. Istomin).

The 21-year-old Raonic goes onto face either second seed Andy Murray or Santiago Giraldo. The Scot is in third-round action later in the day, as well as defending champion Rafael Nadal and third seed David Ferrer.

Eighth seed Kei Nishikori secured his place in the quarter-finals with a 7-6(2), 6-3 win over No. 17 seed Albert Ramos of Spain. The Japanese player saved six of the seven break points that Ramos created to clinch victory in two hours and 12 minutes. He is through to his third tour-level quarter-final of the year, adding to last-eight showings at the Australian Open (l. to Murray) and Buenos Aires (l. to Wawrinka).

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World No. 4 Andy Murray raced into the quarter-finals of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Thursday as he defeated Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo 6-1, 6-2. The second-seeded Scot converted five of his nine break points and hit nine aces as he wrapped up victory in 74 minutes.

"It was good," reflected Murray. "I started the match well. He’s played quite a lot of matches on clay this year, so I was expecting quite a lot of long rallies and there was quite a lot at the start. But once I got ahead started putting pressure on him, he started going for more and made more mistakes."

Murray goes onto face Canadian Milos Raonic, who stepped up his clay-court credentials as he ousted sixth-seeded Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the ATP World Tour 500 clay-court tennis tournament.

Looking ahead to his first-time meeting with Raonic, Murray commented, "It’s going to be completely different to today. He’s obviously got a huge serve and a very good game. He can obviously dictate the match, so you need to make sure you play a solid match. There’s a chance that he’s going to give you the odd opportunity by making mistakes and you need to be ready to take that."

The 24-year-old Murray opened his clay-court campaign last week with a quarter-final showing at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (l. to Berdych). He has a 21-5 match record on the season.

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At the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, Mahesh Bhupathi and Nenad Zimonjic advanced to the quarter-finals with a 7-6(4), 4-6, 10-6 win over Israelis Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram. Playing together for the first time in five years, Bhupathi and Zimonjic won two points less than their opponents but prevailed in a Match Tie-break in one hour and 37 minutes.

Fourth-seeded Poles Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski were also made to work hard for their quarter-final berth, edging Eric Butorac and Bruno Soares 3-6, 7-6(3), 12-10 in one hour and 35 minutes. They go onto face seventh seeds Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer, who defeated British duo Andy Murray and Jamie Murray 6-2, 5-7, 10-8 in one hour and 46 minutes.

« Last Edit: April 26, 2012, 01:24:09 PM by conchita »

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World No. 2 Rafael Nadal held off a spirited challenge from Robert Farah on Thursday, beating the Colombian qualifier 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

The Spaniard has not lost a match at the ATP World Tour 500 clay-court tournament since 2003 and improved to a 32-1 event record as he defeated Farah in 86 minutes. World No. 246 Farah rallied from an early break down in the second set, but was broken twice more as Nadal swept to victory.

The 25-year-old Nadal has won the title on his past six visits to Barcelona, defeating David Ferrer in last year’s final. The Mallorcan is coming off his 20th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 victory at last week’s Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he defeated Novak Djokovic in the final, and has a 24-3 match record on the season.

The top-seeded Nadal goes onto face fifth-seeded Serbian Janko Tipsarevic, who dismissed Portugal’s Frederico Gil 6-2, 6-2 in 69 minutes. The Serb has lost both his past two meetings with Nadal, including once on clay, and is bidding to reach his third ATP World Tour semi-final of the season.

Another Spaniard reached the last eight as Feliciano Lopez defeated Jarkko Nieminen 6-3, 6-1. The left-hander saved all seven break points he faced and broke serve four times to clinch victory in 71 minutes. The seventh-seeded Lopez reached the quarter-finals for the first time in 12 attempts last year, falling to Ivan Dodig.

Ferrer Reaches QFs

Third seed David Ferrer impressed in a 6-0, 6-2 dismissal of fellow Spaniard Albert Montanes. Ferrer saved the four break points he faced and converted five of his eight opportunities to claim victory in 80 minutes.

World No. 6 Ferrer has reached the semi-finals or better in the past five years in Barcelona, going onto reach the final in 2008, 2009 & 2011, losing to Nadal each time. The Valencia resident is bidding to reach his fourth ATP World Tour final of the season, following titles in Auckland (d. Rochus), Buenos Aires (d. Almagro) and Acapulco (d. Verdasco).

Ninth seed Fernando Verdasco completed the quarter-final line-up with a 6-4, 6-4 win over 13th-seeded South African Kevin Anderson in the last match Thursday. Verdasco has now won seven straight matches in Barcelona, having claimed the title on his last visit in 2010.

« Last Edit: April 27, 2012, 09:14:00 AM by conchita »

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Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.